It’s no secret that the Jets’ passing game desperately needs help. The Jets almost certainly will release receiver Santonio Holmes during this offseason. They have a solid slot receiver in Jeremy Kerley and a good complementary piece in David Nelson. Stephen Hill was thought to have No. 1 receiver potential, but he has failed to produce accordingly in his first two seasons, and struggled with injuries in 2013.

And so it was that the Jets ranked second-to-last in the NFL last season with 183.3 passing yards per game. They were only slightly better in yards per attempt – 21st, with 6.8. That’s why most draft projections have the Jets picking a wide receiver or tight end with the 18th selection.

Before we get to details about Cooks, another refresher on some combine/draft items …

Coming on Thursday and Friday, we’ll introduce you to Mike Evans and Ryan Shazier.

Here now, a look at Brandin Cooks …

WHERE HE COULD GO

Most draft projections have Clemson’s Sammy Watkins and Evans as the top two receivers off the board, as the experts like to say. Lee is regarded as the second- or third-best receiver prospect in the draft.

After that, things get a bit more muddled. As you can see, McShay is the only guy on our list who likes Cooks at No. 18 to the Jets. McShay has Cooks as his fourth receiver off the board, after Watkins, Evans and Lee. Kiper has Cooks going at No. 28 to Carolina, as the seventh receiver taken.

Rang has four receivers getting picked in the first round. Brugler has six, Jeremiah seven and Davis five. None of them have Cooks as a first-round pick.

Brooks also likes Cooks to Carolina at No. 28, as the fifth receiver taken. Smith projects him to Carolina at No. 28, as well, but as the sixth receiver selected.

So there is a wide variety of opinions about where Cooks will go. Three of our projections have him at No. 28, four don’t have him going in the first round at all, and then there is McShay, who believes the Jets will take Cooks at No. 18.

Sports Illustrated’s Doug Farrar is also a well-regarded draft projectionist, as it were. He has five receivers going in the first round. Cooks is not among them. Farrar projects the Jets to draft Ebron at No. 18.

STRENGTHS

Why is McShay such a believer in Cooks?

McShay lauds Cooks’ “great burst, good top-end speed and very strong route-running instincts.” McShay acknowledges that Florida State’s Kelvin Benjamin, LSU’s Odell Beckham Jr. and Fresno State’s Davante Adams are receiver candidates to go around this area in the draft, “although I'm not as quite as high on Benjamin as some others after studying him on tape,” McShay writes.

It’s important to note that McShay has Ebron getting picked at No. 16 by Baltimore, so he is not available in McShay’s scenario of Cooks going to the Jets.

Kiper likes Watkins, Evans, Lee, Beckham, Benjamin and Adams all ahead of Cooks. But he did praise Cooks, noting that he “separates easily with change-of-direction explosiveness and he's a reliable hands-catcher.”

The folks over at CBS Sports/NFLDraftScout.com believe Cooks is the seventh-best receiver available in this draft, and project him as an early second-round selection.

“Quick hands to adjust and pluck with very good coordination to look the ball into his mitts. Quick footwork to set up his routes and fool defenders. Has worked hard to fine-tune this area. Works hard to max out his frame.”

Despite not being the biggest receiver out there – 5-10 and 186 pounds – Cooks has never missed a game on any level, according to Brugler’s scouting report.

And it is hard to argue with Cooks’ production in 2013. He won the Biletnikoff Award as college football’s top receiver – an honor that went to Lee in 2012. Cooks had 128 catches for 1,730 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also returned 12 punts for 72 yards.

WEAKNESSES

Unfortunately for Cooks, many of these are weaknesses he can’t rectify easily.

As Brugler points out, Cooks “lacks ideal size with below average height and length for the position. Limited strength, muscle and overall growth potential. Struggles with physical defenders and doesn't have ideal body strength. Will be overwhelmed in man coverage. Looks to avoid contact and would much rather escape out of bounds or go around defenses. Needs to secure the ball through the process to eliminate drops and fumbles. Smallish target for quarterbacks.”

Cooks can certainly get stronger in the NFL, but getting taller is not an easy fix. If the Jets are looking for a long outside receiver, and they see similar weaknesses to what Brugler noticed, those would be legitimate concerns. Moreover, the Jets’ West Coast offense requires their receivers to be capable blockers, so they cannot look to avoid contact.

But the Jets also do not have a lot of explosive, play-making players in their offense, and Cooks certainly brings that asset.

COMBINE OUTLOOK

If Cooks performs well enough in combine workouts, and shows off his speed and change-of-direction ability, perhaps that will be enough for teams to overlook his size issues, and bump him up into the first round. Like Lee, Cooks will be at the combine from Feb. 20-23, and do his workouts on the final day. It will be interesting to see what kind of shape Cooks arrives in, in terms of his bulk.

SO WHO IS THIS GUY?

Cooks is from Stockton, Calif., and was considered a highly regarded recruit coming out of high school. Rivals.com ranked him the No. 26 receiver nationally in the Class of 2011, and the No. 28 player in the state of California. His speed earned him the nickname Sonic Boom, and he was a Junior Olympic track sprinter. To get a better idea about how the death of Cooks’ father drove him to excel, check out this in-depth profile of Cooks from The Oregonian newspaper in Portland.